I’m on a mission to show that good vegan eats can include delicious and tasty foods like my new favorite, these Best Vegan Brownies. I call them “best” because, well, in my book that’s exactly what they are. Dark Chocolate throughout and topped with Chocolate Frosting laced with chopped pecans. A recent study shows that including dark chocolate can be beneficial for your heart. That’s good news for these brownies…and for those of us who get to eat them.
We go to a lot of my family dinners. Let me just say this about my family, they tolerate our veganism and they’re very accommodating, but I don’t see them jumping on the V bandwagon any time soon.
That doesn’t mean I don’t wish they would because I know it’s healthier. But I keep my clam shut. There’s nothing worse than a pushy vegan. Well, the pushy hunter who shoves pictures in your face of their gutted dead deer right after you tell them you’re vegan? That’s probably worse.
I think everyone has to make their own way in this world. When people are ready, they’ll seek out information or they’ll ask. And when they ask about my vegan diet, I’m happy to share with them what I know to be true – being vegan is a great way to live!
Yes, V is for Vendetta, but in this case it works quite well for Vegan! I’m thinking about putting little banners like this in the food I bring to our family dinners. I want them to know when they take a bite of these delicious brownies that they’re eating 100% pure-bred, tasty vegan morsels!
But hopefully not the toothpicks. Those aren’t fun eats at all.
Best Vegan Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup margarine, melted
- ½ cup peanut butter, melted
- ½ cup applesauce
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup soy buttermilk, Soy milk combined with 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 1 tablespoon flax seed meal, (ground flax seed)
- 4 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup cocoa
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Chocolate Frosting (see recipe below)
Directions
- Heat oven to 350 F degrees. Lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
- Wet ingredients: Combine margarine, peanut butter, apple sauce and melted chocolate in a large bowl. Stir until well combined then add the soy buttermilk and give it another stir or two until everything’s, you know, well acquainted.
- In a small bowl combine the corn starch, flax meal and water. Stir a bit and set aside so they can jell out.
- Add the sugar and vanilla to the rest the large bowl of wet ingredients and stir. Then add your corn starch mixture and stir that up with the rest of the wet ingredients as well. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, back at the farm, you’re going to want to mix together your dry ingredients. Combine the flour, cocoa powder and salt and stir. Wow, that was tough, wasn’t it? Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and give everything another stir.
- Add the chocolate chips (you definitely don’t want to forget those!).
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish and bake in heated oven about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven when the brownies are to your liking (some like them gooey, others like them more well-done).
- Let the brownies cool for about 10 minutes and then you can add the icing. Yes, normally you would wait until the cake or brownies were completely cooled, but this time we’re going for a little thinner consistency on top. Sounds like the way my dad described his hair. Go figure!
Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients
- ½ cup margarine
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ – ½ cup cocoa
- ½ cup walnuts, chopped
- 2 – 3 tablespoons soy milk
Directions
- Begin by combining the powdered sugar and margarine. It’s a bit tough to stir at first, but just take your time with it and you’ll get there. Add the cocoa and stir some more.
- Now add just enough soy milk to get the icing to just the right consistency. I like it to be spreadable, but not too smooth. Sorry, MJ, no smooth criminals here. Add the walnuts and then wait for those brownies to finish baking.
Enjoy!
Tiffany
The brownies look irresistible. I definitely see myself making a batch in the very near future. 🙂
Marly
Yeah! Let me know how it goes!
Ruby
These look beautiful and delicious! Brownies are my favorite.
I know what you mean, I hate to be a pushy vegan, but whenever my friends eat something I bake and their eyes get all big when I tell them it’s vegan, I just want to say “See? Who needs the animal products!” Vegan and proud!
Marly
Yes, Ruby! I swear I think most people I meet believe vegans subsist on an assortment of nuts, twigs, and maybe chopped carrots. I always think, wait ’til they see the great vegan food we eat!
Candy Rae
These look amazing and I can’t wait to make them!! Do you think it will make a difference if I make them with almond milk, instead of soy?
Marly
Hi Candy Rae. Love your name!
You know what? I’ve never had a problem subbing almond milk for soy. I say go for it! And then let me know.
….
I’m waiting?
Kate
These look so good. I’m going to give them a go without the peanut butter and use freenut butter. I reckon it should work.
JC
There is a tidal wave of consciousness sweeping across the land. Here are two uplifting videos to help everyone understand why the number of vegans has doubled in less than 3 years and why so many are making this life affirming choice: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKr4HZ7ukSE and http://www.veganvideo.org
Jennifer
Marly, these look incredibly yummy!!
OliviaRose
I made these today and they are insanely awesome! They are not just the best vegan brownies, they are the best of any brownie! They are very rich and fudgy. Will be serving these to a bunch of non-vegans and I know they will love them.
jenn
Made these yesterday…OMG the best Brownie ever! And I used almond milk.
Suzette
I am not vegan but I try to eat as healthy as possible. Do you think these would work if I use organic buttermilk from grass-fed cows and butter instead of margarine? Margarine is SO BAD for you!! Do you know (I’m assuming you don’t) that it’s only one molecule away from being plastic? There’s no way your body can process that. I also try to stay away from soy as much as possible. 🙂
Marly
Hi Suzette. Thanks for your comment! I don’t eat butter or buttermilk made from cows (or other animals) because of the way animals are treated on factor farms, but also because those products have cholesterol. The thing about vegan products it that there is no cholesterol involved. That’s great! However, I agree that it’s always important to be concerned about what we’re eating. I recommend the use of margarine but in moderation. And I’m picky about what margarine I use. If you wanted to use something besides margarine, I would recommend coconut oil. Earth Balance even makes a coconut spread that is perfect for brownies or baked goods. I sometimes will do half margarine and half peanut butter too. You can also use vegetable oil in place of the margarine. Thanks again for your comment. Best wishes!
Marly
cheryl
The brownies look delicous. But I do have a question. I thought chocolate chips were made with milk. How is that vegan if they are? Thanks
Marly
Hi Cheryl. Not ALL chocolate chips have dairy in them. For example, there are some Ghirradelli chocolate chips that are dairy free. Target has some chocolate chunk chips that are dairy free and so does Baker’s. There are also several brands that offer dairy-free chocolate chips in health food stores.
Carrie
Your brownies look amazing!!!!! I was wondering if you have ever made them with a different kind of flour. My son has a wheat allergy. Just thought I would ask in case someone else has had experience with other flours…. rice or spelt or other?
Jeanne
My friend and I made these the other night. These have to be the best brownies, ever– vegan or not! Even my friend and grandmother, who are not vegan, loved them! Instead of soy milk, though, we used plain almond milk and forwent the vinegar. We also left off the frosting and nuts. I honestly think the frosting might have been too much, because these brownies are super moist and rich! I’m definitely going to be making these for our summer family picnics, and cannot wait to see the surprised looks on peoples’ faces when I tell them “they’re vegan!”. Thanks for sharing this delicious recipe!
Marly
Thanks Jeanne! And I love all the little changes you made. Sometimes I’m in the mood for something over the top sweet. Did I just say “sometimes?” OK. Well, I’m always in the mood for that, but other times I find a way to hold back and enjoy life without a little frosting. I’m glad you like it that way too!
Zmilde
Okay, this may sound silly….but doesn’t margarine have milk product in it? To be sure, I looked at the ingredients in the margarine at the store tonight when I was buying the stuff to make these brownies. It specifically says milk on the label. Is there a certain brand that doesn’t? Do they make any from soy or almond milk? Help! I went vegan last spring and couldn’t be happier! Also, on a side note, does anyone have a favorite egg substitute they use in baking? I always do the flaxseed meal egg-but in my muffins today, it dominated the taste. I bought a new bag of flaxseed incase it had (for some reason) gone ad early. I keep it in the fridge?
Marly
This is not a silly question at all. There is vegan margarine out there. If you look at the salt-free Fleischman’s, it appears to be dairy-free…and reasonably priced. I believe Blue Bonnet lite is also dairy-free, but I do not prefer baking with it because it doesn’t provide the right kind of texture in baked goods. There is also Earth Balance which has both margarine and vegetable shortening that is vegan. From time-to-time we have found certain store brands will be “accidentally” dairy-free as well. It takes looking at the carton.
Flax seed is my go-to favorite egg replacer because in addition to providing some bonding action, it adds Omega 3s as well. We keep our ground flax seed in the freezer…even though we go through it relatively fast! You only need about 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed combined with about 3 tablespoons of water to replace one egg. I wouldn’t think that would have much of an influence on the taste of your muffins, but you could always try adding additional flavoring like cinnamon, orange zest, etc. Alternatively you can use 1/4 cup of whipped tofu or even a mashed banana to serve as a good egg replacer.
I hope that’s helpful. Congrats on your vegan journey! Marly
Zmilde
So I did this recipe completely vegan…and it turned out GREAT! Everyone loved it(and I am the only one who is vegan, ha!) It also was gluten free, which is a pretty cool bonus. I used almond milk instead of soy, and used 1 cup of soy flour and 1/2 cup whole grain(GF) flour. This worked out perfectly to replace the white all purpose flour, plus it added protein and nutrients! Thanks for the recipe, I took it to our bible study group, and only told them it was vegan AFTER they ate it! No complaints, only compliments =)
Dixie
They are very good but very rich and a bit too sweet for me.
Heidi
Do you have to put soy buttermilk and soy milk together or can you just put soy milk in? I don’t know where to find soybuttermilk.
Marly
I just use soy milk and add 1 or 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar. Works like a charm!
Jenny
I love the V banners! That is an excellent idea! I also agree with the pushy vegan/pushy carnivore statement!
Alyssa Smith
I don’t really like peanut butter, is the taste prominent in this recipe?
Marly
Hi Alyssa. I have made this recipe and asked people after they tried if they could taste the peanut butter and so far no one has answered yes. I think the flavor of the coconut oil and the chocolate overrides the peanut butter. It was my goal to use the peanut butter as a healthier source of fat, without adding a peanut butter flavor. Hope this helps!